The Stars Don't Lie
by The Singing Dawn
Summary: War is ravaging amongst the shinobi nations. Sakura finds herself entwined in love for her new comrade,Sai unknowingly. Sasuke is the mastermind behind the war.Yet,who is he so desperately looking for?The blossom might just be his answer. Saisaku Sasusaku
1. Prologue

**A Saisaku fanfiction by _The Singing Dawn_ **

**Summary: War is ravaging the shinobi nations. Sakura finds herself entwined in love for her new comrade, Sai unknowingly. Sasuke is the mastermind behind the war. Yet, who is he so desperately looking for? The blossom might just be his answer.**

**そうねすべて自分次第**  
**でも決して孤独じゃないよ**

**My Dear Friend **

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**Prologue**

Sakura was sick and tired of the smell of war. The air reeked of the choking stench of blood and of charred human flesh. Most of all, there was this wave of desolation and hopelessness in all that she saw that made her feel indifferent herself.

She had seen enough corpses. She had seen enough orphans grasping ever so tightly at their deceased parents' clothes. She had tried her very best to pry their fingers away from them. They had wailed in distress and frustration. Why weren't their parents replying? Why were they sleeping?

They are on a long journey, we mustn't bother them. Sakura had answered them solemnly.

The medical tents had been choked full of people ever since the war begun. How long had it been? Four months? Five? Sakura had absolutely no idea. All she did everyday was try her extreme best to heal the poor injured souls. Some of them were already on the verge of death when they were brought here that Sakura herself had to put them to sleep.

It was a thing she found she could never do before the horrid war. Yet, the ease she felt when she injected the chemical into their tortured bodies was indescribable. She felt as though she had released them from their terrible predicament.

I have become inhuman, Sakura thought to herself, stretching her palms in front of her face.

These were the hands that had killed the people struggling in pain. They are my hands.

"Sakura, so that's where you went." A feminine voice greeted Sakura from behind. "I was looking for you everywhere."

She gave her a faint and transient smile. She allowed the silence to remain in the air. It was almost comforting to have a breath fresh air and to feel one's existence in quiet landscape.

"This is the first place where I met you. Back when we were kids." Ino grinned. Sakura studied her face. Her facial features were slightly dull now. There were tiny scratches on the side of her fair countenance and despite the high-spirited tone, she looked weary.

"Yeah. Nothing's changed, huh?" answered Sakura, laying herself down onto the velvet grass. The fresh smell of grass refreshed her lightly.

"You still have a wide forehead." There was a vague chuckle.

"Shut up, Ino-pig!" Sakura growled mockingly. She looked towards the sky above. It was a propitious sky marbled with pearly white clouds. The golden shimmer had been concealed by the fleecy clouds but in spite of that, Sakura felt a pervading sense of warmth merely from the single gaze.

"Do you- Do you think that maybe," started Ino tentatively.

"This war will end?" Sakura finished her sentence immediately. Ino gave an uncertain nod. She took a deep breath. "Yes, but I don't know how long it may take and how many lives it would take."

There was a palpitating silence once again that weighed down on the two like a load of boulders. They wished the end of the war so much.

"Come to think of it," muttered Ino. "I wonder how Shikamaru and the others are doing."

Sakura leaned her head slightly to the side. It had been nearly a week since she had last seen Naruto and the others. They had been dispatched to a nearby Fire village to tackle the enemy forces under the name of Team 23. Sakura felt queasy at the thought of any of them being killed. They were her friends. Despite the number of people she had seen dead, she wasn't prepared to see any of her friends dead.

She shut her eyes as she remembered how hard she had argued with Tsunade sama to be allowed to the battlefield. She had been told that it was a huge risk for a skilled medical nin to fight the enemy directly. The loss of a medical nin and the prevalent dangers it might cause her had been reiterated to her by her master.

_"This isn't the time for me to back down, Tsunade sama! I need to be there. I have to be there."_

_"They need me. My friends need me!" _

The leaves on the trees seemed to syllable her thoughts in cautious whispers.

"Sakura san! Ino san! There's a shinobi of Team 23 with serious injuries being brought into the tent now." There came a clangorous yell from the nurse from Sakura's medical tent.

Sakura's heart skipped a beat.

Within minutes, the girls had reached the medical tent. The sight before her caused Sakura to be rooted to the ground. This was…This was…The familiar raven hair, the black shirt and pants. Those brushes that were cluttered all over on the floor…

"Sai!"

The boy had a pained expression and he was bleeding in several areas. His abdomen had almost been torn wide open with a clean cut. His face was blanched and he was gasping for air. He was murmuring something incoherent and his fists were clenched so tightly.

Sakura was stupefied. This was Sai. Why? She could feel a tightening in her chest. He was going to die. Sai…Sai was going to die…

"Sakura san! He seems to have been poisoned by an unknown chemical. But we are attempting to treat the external abrasions now."

Immediately, Sakura snapped out of her despairing thoughts and reverted to her professional self.

With great sense of delicacy, Sakura examined the wounds. They were relatively deep and she could see the innards.

"The poison, is it serious?" She barked at an amateurish nurse that was trembling by her side.

"N-No, it's not a severe poison. it's the blood that he's losing…" The nurse's face turned the colour of putty and she turned sideways at the sight of Sai's horrendous gashes.

Suppressing her emotions, Sakura immediately summoned all her chakra and went to work with the healing of the deepest gash at the abdomen.

"Sai, can you hear me? Don't give up now! Sai!" Sakura yelled at the top of her voice. She could feel tears brimming and it was as though there was someone tearing at her heart.

It was vital to keep the patient awake. Sakura could vividly remember the words she had been taught.

"Sai! Sai!" Sakura screamed again and again, whenever she felt Sai's pulse slowing down. "Wake up, wake up or I'll clobber you!"

His lips moved vaguely as though he was attempting to say something. Instead, he gave a great rasping noise and blood spurted out of his mouth.

"Shut up!" Sakura yelled, her heart rending with sadness. "Save your words for later!"

Ino had finished healing the minor gashes and was examining the poison on the kunai. Her hands were trembling as she handled the kunai. She felt a pang of weakness and her limbs grew jelly-like. Just when she was going to slip onto the floor, she felt a strong grip on her elbow, steadying her.

"Are you okay?" The voice was breathless and urgent.

"Shikamaru? Why-why are you here?" She gazed at the boy who stood right in front of her. Shikamaru. It had been such a long time since she had last spoken to him.

"Sai. I sent him here. How's his condition?" He gave Ino a questioning glance.

Ino bit her lip and felt her eyes filmed over. She turned to look at Sakura who was crying and desperately healing the profound gash. "Sakura is-" She could no longer continue. Rushing to the equipment before her, she began examining the poison.

Her fingers quavered as she placed the poison on her test slide. This poison was mild, Ino concluded with ease. A mere plant type poison that was unlikely to harm his system. For now, Ino thought gloomily, was the intense wound that had been inflicted on Sai.

Sakura could feel her hands quivering. They were covered in blood but yet she persevered. She could see a slight colour in Sai's face. The wounds were gradually closing up. She was relieved. Rivulets of sweat trickled down her face and she felt weak. Her chakra was depleting quickly and it did not help that his wound had a long way before it would completely closed. It had to be done rapidly or the loss of blood might result in his...

Renewing her chakra supply, Sakura continued to treat his gash with determination. She was not going to let any of her friends die. She was no longer the little girl who was always afraid of everything, who needed Naruto's help everywhere she went.

The cherry blossom was going to grow quietly in celebration of all that was quintessential and dear to her.

* * *

"Sasuke sama, there has been news that there's a new team from Konoha that have been dispatched to one of the Fire villages. They are putting up a strong defense. There have been a high amount of casualties. This should not go on further."

The figure sitting on the chair did not respond for a while.

"Konoha? Who are the members of the team?" His voice was frosty and had a glassy indifference in it.

"There is a most distinct character in that team. A boy with flashing blonde hair and-"

There was a pervading laughter from the figure. The laughter resounded throughout the area and pierced into the very heart of the man.

"I will personally welcome them."

To be continued...

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**I started writing this fanfic knowing that noone is going to like it. LOL. I still had this impulse to write. Please review. **

**Arigatou!**

願いを　流れ星に　そっと唱えてみたけれど  
泣きたいよ　届かない想いを　この空に...

Planetarium


	2. Emotions

**The Stars Don't Lie　by　_The singing dawn_**

**Thank you for the lovely reviews, they really made me day! :) The story is currently moving slowly but nevertheless still advancing! Enjoy the story! **

突然しゃがみ込んで流した　最後の泪  
あなたの気持ち　あの夏の匂い

遠雷

**Chapter One: Emotions**

It snarled and snapped its large jaws at the people. Arching itself, it hissed menacingly and with one big swish, whipped its tail at the two closest shinobis. Their terrified shrieks were heard as they were launched in the air and smashed onto the ground from a shocking height.

Everything was in chaos. The desperate villagers were scrambling to their feet and rushing out of their homes in a hurry. Children clutched at their parents' clothes and tottered after them in bewilderment. The people could sense the unfathomable fear in the air and, they were bent on saving themselves.

The weak were trampled over and there were apprehensive cries in the air as parents realized their children were missing or the children grew aware that they were alone. There was not a single shard of kindness for anyone. The villagers had only a single thought in mind. They had to flee from this horrendously dangerous place. Although guilt was settling in their hearts like lead, they could not afford to halt. Their determination to escape egged them forward.

Yet, amidst all the pandemonium, it grew mightier. Its gargantuan body silhouetted against the faint moonlight that spread onto the area as the few wisps of clouds revealed the concealed pale moon. There was a monstrous snarl from it and with its insanely huge head, it swerved into a group of shinobis that were preparing to launch an attack.

There was a shrill and piercing scream in the air as a girl was thrown backwards and into a large tree. She cringed and spat out blood. It seeped into her purple jacket and formed a tiny pool on the leaf litter. Her eyes rolled over and she lost consciousness. Her comrades rushed to her side immediately and attempted to revive her.

The snake veered sideways and the lone figure settled on its head for the whole time came into full focus. His dark black hair shone in the moonlight and he stood there, surveying the scene that entered his eyes that were strangely coloured red.

The person he had expected to see wasn't there. He grew impatient. Muttering something under his breath, he commanded the monster to attack again. His eyes glittered unnaturally in the moonlight and he stood on the snake, with a dark expression on his countenance.

A glacial pang of fear went through all the shinobis' hearts then. The snake charged towards them mercilessly, tearing at the air between them. Its fangs grew into focus.

Bitter yells.

Blood.

Then, darkness.

Sakura awoke with a start. Her chest was heaving and she could feel her nightwear sticking onto her body. Sweat, she concluded, not blood. She coaxed herself mentally, and felt as frightened as a child in the dark.

Sasuke.

She felt a quiver of unformulated fear run through her, tearing at her mind relentlessly. Grasping her blanket, she took a sharp intake of breath. Those eyes, they were definitely him. The name held her in a vice. She had attempted to forget him and she thought she had succeeded.

She had failed, again. The three years she had put into forgetting him had all gone down the drain.

Why was he there? Were the snake and the shinobis she had dreamt all real? The girl had been Hinata. She was certain. Sakura sat there, quaking like a jelly. Beneath the cold glare of the desolate night, she felt terrified. She didn't know what to do.

A silence hung in the air. The inky night sky had gradually brightened, and the first rays of sunlight streamed in through her window, like a mother extending her arms to embrace her babe.

She was going to do what was right.

* * *

"Tsunade sama!"

"NO, did you not hear what I say, Sakura! For the last time, no, I say!"

The hokage's voice was adamant. She was determined not to back down.

"Why," demanded Sakura in a bitter tone. "If medical aid is given immediately then they won't have to die. I've heard about how many of the shinobis there die because of the lack of immediate medical care! Please, let me go. Besides, the dream I had had, it all leads up to the fact that I have to go!"

Her face was flushing red with impatience and she clenched her fists to prevent herself from lashing her anger out on the table.

Tsunade swirled her chair around and gazed out the window momentarily.

"Tsunade sama!"

"When I say no, it means no!" Tsunade roared and she punched onto the table, creating a dent.

There was a pause.

Sakura flashed her emerald eyes at Tsunade. What was wrong? Why wouldn't she allow her to go?

"Is that clear?" The question danced alongside Sakura's ears.

Grudgingly, she murmured a "yes" and bowed vaguely before stomping out of the room.

* * *

Placing the fresh flowers into the vase, she stood in the room. She watched as the IV drip trickled uniformly downwards. It was filling up the pack gradually, just like it always does, Sakura perceived. There was the occasional beeping sound of the machine that helped to fill the otherwise silent room with the teeniest bit of sound.

His chest rose evenly. Compared to his return to Konoha last week, he was impeccably clean which Sakura could not help but notice. There was not a slightest hint of the crimson blood that had fully stained her hands. She had taken three days to completely rid herself of the stench. It had taken a longer time than always. The smell of his blood was somehow still lingering in the air.

It had been a whole week since his return. He had been completely unconscious after Sakura had painstakingly healed the serious wound on his abdomen. Looking at his blanched face, she sighed in dismay.

She hated this **insensitive idiot.**

Walking over to the window, she gazed at the view beyond Konoha that laid before her. To the west, the sky was alit with a myriad of colours that glazed it with a wild sense of cheer. The mountains with their jagged peaks rose from the stretches of greenery like towering giants. It would all have been picturesque if not for the wisps of smoke that was seen spouting from the impenetrable forests.

_War_, Sakura wondered to herself randomly. _What a stupid thing. People are dying. Yet, the sun still sets and rises like it always does. _

"Sa-Sakura…"

The voice was weak and transient. Although she would never admit it, his voice set her heart fluttering with the renewed vigour.

The boy was attempting to sit up onto the bed but he flinched with pain and fell onto the bed for support.

"Don't try getting up. You still need plenty of rest." Sakura said, pouring a glass of water from the jug that was placed beside the vase of flowers. She handed the glass to him.

Instead of accepting it, he shoved the glass away. The glass flew out of Sakura's hands and crashed into the white wall. Water drenched the wall and it turned a deeper shade of white.

There was a pregnant silence. The beeping of the machine filled the room once more.

"Why," asked Sai, his hands clenching the blanket firmly. "Why did you save me? I don't deserve to live."

"Sai…" Sakura began, her voice nearly breaking with emotions.

"I was trying to save her. She had re…returned to get her doll. That bastard was going to kill her. She was going to die under that ridiculous amount of kunais. I…I couldn't stand for it…I" There was a loud hacking voice and Sai's face became distorted in pain. "She died…there was that one last kunai, and she died…"

"She just died…I wanted, I so wanted to save her…She had told me that the doll was her world…" He continued mumbling, his eyes tightly shut. "Is this what you would call a loss? It's horridly sharp and it's ripping my guts out."

"Danzo sama was right. Having no emotions is better." His eyes glanced into the ceiling blankly.

Sakura felt a lump in her throat and she could not answer him. She just watched as he gazed vacantly. Those eyes that he had…they reminded her of _him_. Sasuke... Tears flowed down her cheeks freely. War could change anyone.

"Sai," Sakura said. "Emotions make you human. This is what will make you human. You don't deserve to die…you tried your very best. Please…don't say that. I feel empty when you say that…you remind me of him when you do that…those words…the way you say them…like how indifferent he was when he spoke then…"

"So that's what I am, huh? A substitute for him. I remind you of him, do I? Then," paused Sai, his eyes utterly empty. "Never appear in front of me ever again. You're annoying."

The words hit her like a hammer blow. _Never appear in front of me…_ _Am I really so annoying?_

"I'm…I'm sorry." With that, Sakura buried her face in her hands and threw open the door. She ran into Shikamaru who was about to enter.

Murmuring a soft apology, she rushed out of the room in tears.

_Never appear in front of me…Don't worry, I won't ever again._

The lapis-lazuli sky was a lit with the scattered stars that shone as brightly as candles in a dark room. There were a few wisps of clouds that drifted pass the white moon that glowed wanly, spreading light onto the gates of Konoha.

The shinobi guarding the gate yawned with exhaustion. Guarding the gate for two days straight was really taking a toll on him. How he yearned for a warm bed and some soup to fill his stomach. Sighing, he leaned onto his chair. A gentle sweet fragrance drifted into his nose.

It was a strange sort of smell that made him feel so relaxed. He was gradually pulled into surreal fantasy. His eyelids drooped and before long, he was snoring deeply.

The figure that had stayed hidden behind the pillar of the guardhouse stuffed the tiny blowpipe into her pocket but in her haste, the powder in the packet landed on the floor, scattering itself all over the ground. In her fluster, she was oblivious to it.

Then, after ensuring the coast was clear with furtive glances, she dashed out of the gate and before long; she was feeling the wind caressing her once more.

The wind howled in her ears and she felt a blazing determination in her heart. It was now or never.

Gazing back at her village, she made a silent farewell.

Of all the stars that shone that night, there was one that was illuminated with singular brightness.

**To be continued...**

**The story might only be updated after a couple of weeks so please do have patience. Thank you and please do review! **

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**あたしがほうき星になれたならば、**

**きっとそばにいてあげるどんな時も**

**～ほうき星**


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